Love by Any Other Name
by LadyDrey
Summary: Brought together by mutual respect and a love for their respective children, Draco and Harry begin a friendship that will change both of them, and show that they are more alike than they expected. Mostly Epilogue compliant, except Harry's life.
1. Chapter 1

Draco Malfoy had faced Aurors, Death Eaters, the second most powerful wizard of his lifetime, crazy magical creatures, his parents, and a certifiably insane ex-wife. While he had not always triumphed over these horrors, he was rarely afraid. So really, there was no reason at all for him to be terrified right now. Comparatively speaking, his ancient boss was very tame. She was a little old lady, for goodness' sake! He sighed despondently, shifting in his seat. This was taking so long. If he wasn't so afraid for what lay ahead, he would be afraid for his son. The boy was only three, after all, and he'd already been in there for twenty minutes. At least McGonagall wasn't yelling.

He glanced nervously at his surroundings. This sitting room had been a recent addition, since he had left. It was a shame, really. He hadn't been particularly fond of Dumbledore, but the man certainly had a way of making people trust him. Once McGonagall had taken over, parents barged in on a regular basis to complain of some injustice that had happened to their precious little brat. Draco thought it was silly. Dumbledore was very fair, but if at all possible he thought that McGonagall was even more so. Maybe because she had to put up with more pressure. Whatever the case, the comfy waiting room was usually full of angry parents, who she dealt with patiently. Draco would have sent them packing, if he had to deal with them.

Surprisingly, though, he was quite alone today. Possibly because it was a beautiful Saturday in the middle of summer, but he couldn't be sure. He sighed softly. In spite of his fear, he was beginning to get restless. His eyes scanned the room, looking for something to amuse him. His breath caught in his throat as he saw the corner of a magazine poking from under a couch cushion. He knew that arm, that hand. They belonged to a certain dark-haired wizard that put him in this mess to begin with, a wizard that he would have to have a strict talking-to when this was all over. "If I survive it," he thought pessimistically. He knew he was overreacting, but that only made him more peeved.

After approximately three seconds of self-control, he grabbed the magazine and skimmed the front cover until he found the proper page numbers. Flipping to it, he chastised himself. It simply wouldn't do to feed this ridiculous obsession. Ever since details about the entire Last Battle situation, and his role in it, had come to light, Draco had simply become fascinated by the man he once thought he know. The more he learned, the more he realised how little he understood. The headline splashed across the page luridly, making Draco wince. Honestly, the font was simply garish. The words, however, made up for the assault on his eyes.

_HARRY POTTER – FIVE YEARS LATER_

_Harry Potter, the saviour of the wizarding world, speaks exclusively with our consultant about his life, career, and plans to adopt._

"Adopt?" Draco said outloud, "Why would he want to do that?" He loved Scorpius very much, but being a single father was extremely difficult, and he didn't think that he would ever have gone into it intentionally. Now, of course, he couldn't imagine life without his son, but before his birth he was very apprehensive. He quickly skimmed to the part about Potter's adoption, and certain quotes jumped out at him.

"_Rather famously, of course, I am an orphan myself, and as such I am very aware of the stigma against having no parents, and the heartache of being raised by people who do not want you. Although I will be doing it alone, I know that I will be able to provide for this child what it needs most – love and a home."_

"_The adoption process is very long and complex, and even being Harry Potter does not get me an easier path [laughs]. However, the end is near, as I've been going through the process for more than a year now. The estimate is about two weeks until I get my little baby. I don't mind if it's a boy or a girl, but I've been told that more girls get put up for adoption, so that's what I'm anticipating. I'm very excited!"_

"_To be totally honest, I haven't thought much about a name. I'll only get to name her if she's a newborn or very very young, because most orphaned children already have names. As such, I haven't been worrying about it. If anyone out there has any suggestions for names, just owl me! [laughs]"_

Draco laughed to himself, knowing just how much people would love to be part of the naming process of the famous Harry Potter's baby. He anticipated Potter's house to be overflowing with mail in the next little while. The magazine's distraction had almost made him forget about his nervousness, but it returned when McGonagall opened the door to her office. He jumped up. "Professor! Where is Scorpius? I'm very sorry about everything, but I can explain."

Professor McGonagall looked at the young man sadly. His name had been cleared years earlier, largely thanks to Mr Potter, and most teachers at Hogwarts treated him with respect and friendliness. The students, with the exception of very few sixth and seventh years, were too young to be aware of all the names associated with the Death Eaters. The only person, now, who felt that Draco had to prove anything was the poor man himself. He had distanced himself from his parents, learned humility, and become the well-liked Potions Master. He was clearly a changed man, and his love for his son demonstrated it perfectly. Her every interaction with him, however, was filled with his own fear and thirst to prove himself.

"Professor Malfoy, please come in. I sent Scorpius down with Professor Longbottom, as he happened to be nearby and I know how much your son loves looking at the plants in the Herbology classrooms. Besides, I wanted to talk with you privately. Have a seat. Would you like some tea?"

Draco sat nervously. He refused the tea, but only because his hands were shaking. Was this incident the last straw? Would he or his son be kicked out? If Scorpius could not stay, he would not either. "Please, Professor, I can explain. I take full responsibility."

"Draco," she began. At the use of his given name, he stopped speaking. "You know that allowing your son to live here in the castle at such a young age was a controversial decision. I had a lot of people question it, especially other teachers. It has never been done before. And, as much as I do not like to admit it, a lot of the arguments had to do with who you are."

Draco flinched visibly. His position here was precarious. Although he had gotten off to a rocky start with some of the professors, particularly those that taught him during his time at Hogwarts, things had settled down well since, and all were friendly to him. In spite of this, his panic was always hovering at the back of his mind, especially as it related to his son. His greatest fear was that his innocent three-year old would be punished for Draco's past.

McGonagall continued, "I ignored everyone after I made my decision. I will admit that I had misgivings when I received your owl asking for an interview, but I knew that you deserved a chance to prove yourself. And you did, Draco. I knew from the moment that you shook my hand that you were no longer the spoiled, arrogant boy that you were during your school years. You had lived a little since then, and it made you a better person. At that moment I knew that I would give you the job, no matter what it entailed. So I made accommodations for your infant son. And it was the best decision I have ever made."

Hearing the somewhat tearful smile in her voice, Draco lifted his head to look at her. The assumptions of McGonagall and his other colleagues confirmed his fears, and he was having a difficult time hearing them spoken. Looking at her face, though, he recognised that she really did like and respect him. "You may not realise this, but I have always loved and wanted children. I like the students, Draco, but having Scorpius here for the last three years has been amazingly beneficial and therapeutic for myself and many of the teachers. In the wake of the war, we had grown bitter and sad. We had all lost so much. He reminded us of the beauty of life."

Draco was humbled. He felt that way about the child, of course, but he never understood the impact he had on others. "But Professor... he does cause trouble."

McGonagall laughed, a full belly laugh that sounded unused. "Merlin, Draco, his shenanigans are hilarious! Dive-bombing the visiting Ministry officials on a toy broom! I thought that they were going to die of fright, and then they became indignant. 'Well I never!' 'What a child!' 'How dare he!' I've never enjoyed a meeting with them quite so much. And then to blame it all on Harry Potter!" She laughed again.

Draco looked at her in confusion, but then began chuckling too. "In all fairness, he is the one who has gotten him interested in flying. Poor Scorpius looks up to him so much, but doesn't realise how much trouble he got into in school."

McGonagall smiled at him. "I didn't punish him, we just had a good talk about the time and place to do things. He was very quick to apologise to the officials, too. He's a good boy."

After several more minutes of talking, Draco headed down to the greenhouses to collect his son, feeling much lighter. At the end of their meeting, McGonagall had asked him to go visit Potter and ask him a favour. Since the war, they had been cordial, and Draco respected him very much, but he wouldn't say he had much sway over the man. Though perhaps she had sent him because he was the only one at the school under the age of fifty and over the age of seventeen.

Arriving at the greenhouses, he greeted Neville kindly and picked up his excited son. He felt, at least for the moment, very content. He smiled fondly as he listened to Scorpius' garbled explanation of a certain kind of lily. His son, at least, felt perfectly at home here.


	2. Chapter 2

After owling Potter, they set up a time to meet at his house the following week. Draco rolled his eyes as he tried to get directions to Potter's house. Leave it to him to live in the Muggle part of London. Although it would never be for him, he did rather enjoy seeing the parts of the city that his parents never would have let him go to. Scorpius was also having fun, as he was enthusiastically pointing out every Muggle invention. It was a good thing he was still young enough to be enthralled by "normal" Muggle things, because otherwise his outbursts could be suspicious. Draco snorted. As interesting as Muggle technology may be, it would never make sense to him.

Finally arriving, Draco lifted Scorpius up to ring the doorbell and was surprised when Potter yanked open the door within seconds. "Hello, Potter!" Draco said cheerfully, feeling in a rather good mood after their trip. "Shhhh!" Potter hissed, looking panicked. At Draco's insulted and indignant expression, however, he laughed. "I didn't mean it like that, I promise," he whispered, "the baby is sleeping right now, and I don't want her to wake up!"

Shocked, Draco felt very foolish. "I'm sorry, Potter, I didn't realise she had come already. Did you send an owl...?" Potter shook his head and gestured them inside. "Come on in, I'll put up some silencing charms. She can't hear us, but I'll hear her when she wakes up." Looking down as if he'd just noticed him, Potter smiled at Scorpius. "Don't think I've forgotten about you! I made sure I had some of the biscuits you like on hand just for you." Scorpius smiled hugely, but tip toed as they entered Potter's home. He was very conscious that his idol just asked them to be very quiet.

Draco had never been in Potter's home before, and he was surprised by its modest size and tasteful decor. It absolutely looked like a single man with limited interest had decorated it, but it wasn't awful. Shaking his head, he reminded himself that Potter was not the silly, attention seeking boy that he once was (or Draco imagined him to be). "Why was I even surprised that you live in Muggle London, Potter?" he asked, once they were safely in a magically quieted sitting room. Potter laughed. "Honestly, Malfoy, living here makes my life so much easier. No Daily Prophet reporters outside my door, no nosey neighbours who know my history. Just good, quiet people who like me because I'm a person, not a hero. Besides" he smirked, "it weeds out those who really want to come see me. You'd be surprised at how many people refuse to visit when they can't Apparate right to your doorstep."

Draco laughed, knowing exactly what that was like. Living inside of Hogwarts did not grant him many visitors either. Potter looked back at Draco and Scorpius with an appraising eye. "I'm amazed! Two Malfoys who look very dashing in their Muggle clothes! You would fit in seamlessly with the locals." Draco looked stricken, but Scorpius was beaming. "Thank you, Mr Harry Potter! This is my favourite kind of clothes. I picked the blue shirt today, but sometimes I like red or green. And those are Daddy's favourite trousers! We wear these clothes at home all the time. They're comfy." Draco went cold. His son did not just tell Harry Potter his secret love of wearing Muggle clothes. Not a chance. He had, after all, a reputation to protect, one that included billowy robes and a strict adherence to school dress code.

Potter looked at Scorpius indulgently, enjoying their continuing conversation, but every so often he glanced up at Draco, looking both amused and analytical. Draco sat back, knowing that both parties were having fun. He loved watching Scorpius interact with other people, especially those he didn't get to see very often. He sometimes worried that the boy would be too withdrawn from living with so many busy people, and no one his age to play with. However, when given the chance, he took very well to social situations, especially with Potter, who seemed to have a way with his son.

After a while, Potter suggested that they have some tea and biscuits and discuss the favour that Draco had mentioned in his owl. While Draco was settling Scorpius down with his snack, he noticed Potter checking a little device on his desk from time to time. Noticing his look, Potter explained, "it's a baby monitor. If she makes a noise, it will come through louder on here. She's just in the other room, but I don't want her to be alone for too long. Silly, I know, but I never want her to feel neglected or afraid. Also, I want to show her off!" He laughed.

"Anyway," he said, sitting down across from Draco, "what can I do for you and McGonagall?" Draco hardly knew where to begin, especially if he was trying to be persuasive. He wasn't very good at making a good argument. Intimidation and threats he had down to an art, but not logical reasoning.

"Well," he began, "McGonagall has asked me to implore you to come to Hogwarts as a permanent member of staff. You seem to enjoy your role as visiting lecturer, and she was hoping that you would be the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher." These monthly presentations were usually impromptu and greatly anticipated by the students, and were the entire reason that Draco and Potter had any interaction after the trials. It was also where he and Scorpius had forged such a strong friendship.

Potter looked a bit quizzical. "Isn't there already a Defence teacher? And besides, I'm hardly qualified, other than lots of personal experience." He lapsed into a thoughtful silence. "I'd always wanted to be an Auror, but after the war I decided that I had enough of that life. All I wanted was some peace and quiet. I did really enjoy teaching the DA in fifth year, though."

Draco, who knew a bit about the group, nodded helpfully. "I never thought that I would want to be a teacher, but Hogwarts became more of a home to me than anywhere else. I also really enjoyed Potions. Snape wasn't entirely unfair in his favour of me in that class." He laughed. "I was pretty good, as hard as it may be to believe."

Potter smiled. "I knew you were good, you were just so smug about it. My main concern, though is... how can you deal with it? With living there? So much happened in that school, and we lost so many people. We both did." He looked hard at Draco, needing him to understand that he wasn't blaming him or trying to separate them. "How can you walk those halls, some still bearing the scars of the battle, and not remember?"

Draco thought for a moment before he answered. "It's hard. Bloody hard. Sometimes I have bad days, and there are still some places I'd rather not go. But what I did was make new memories. Teaching Scorpius how to walk all through the halls, going to difficult places when I'm happy, and remembering what it was like when I first got there." Potter grimaced a little, involuntarily. "Not what **I **was like, mind you," he quickly added, "but what it felt like to suddenly be part of something so much bigger than yourself, not just limited to your family or their expectations."

Potter smiled nostalgically, and promised to think about it. At that moment, the little device on the desk made a whimpering noise. Scorpius, who had been playing quietly with the toy cars that Potter had provided, looked at it in alarm. "Oh!" Potter smiled, jumping up, "that means she's awake now! Would you like to come see my new baby?"

He led them quickly into a hallway, looking at them apologetically. "Please excuse the state of her room. I was not expecting her until next week, so it's not very set up." Draco waved off the apology, and asked when she had arrived. "Just two days ago, now. She was born two days before that to a single mother, but she died shortly after the birth, unfortunately." He looked genuinely sad, so Draco lightened the mood by asking if he got to name her, and if he had any help from the owls. "I did!" Potter said brightly, then laughed. "Been reading my interviews, have you, Malfoy?" Draco turned a bit pink.

Reaching the end of the hall, Potter opened a door to their left. Through the open door to their right, Draco saw a messy bedroom taken up almost entirely by a rumpled bed. He smiled, realising that he was right in school about Potter not being very neat. Entering the room, he saw a small crib and many piled boxes. The walls were bare, save for one picture frame over the only other piece of furniture, a blue rocking chair.

From the crib Potter lifted a small, pink and yellow bundle that was cooing softly. Cradling her, he went over to the window and opened the blinds. "Come see her!" he entreated excitedly. "Do you want to see the baby, Scorpius?" Both father and son walked over cautiously, peering at the chubby face and little waving hand of the newborn baby. Smiling at her, Draco remembered what Scorpius was like at that age, and felt drawn to the helpless infant. "She's perfect, Potter," he said, "what did you name her?"

Potter smiled faintly. "You know what? I actually took the advice of one of the letters! It amazes even me, especially because I said that as a joke, but this person got it bang on. Wrote anonymously, so I don't know who to thank, but I appreciate it all the same. Look." He gestured to the frame over the rocking chair, which contained a plain piece of parchment with a few words scrawled on it.

_**Ariadne Cassiopeia**_

_Ariadne means "most holy," and is a rare kind of lily._

_Cassiopeia was a beautiful queen of ancient Ethiopia, who was turned into a constellation at her death_.

Draco's vision went fuzzy for a moment, as Potter began explaining why it fit the baby so well, but he already knew. Thank Merlin he had thought to use a generic dictation quill, but this was too close for comfort. After hearing Scorpius and Neville chatter on about this type of lily, he knew that it would be a perfect name for Potter's child. The first name honoured his mother without using her exact name. The middle name was a good, strong Malfoy name, used for generations, but it also flowed well with the first name. And, Draco thought, it tied in nicely with Potter's fame and immortalisations in various forms, including books, magazines, plays, and even an enormous statue. From the various things he heard as he tried to act casual, Potter agreed with his reasoning.

As they were leaving, Potter promised to owl soon with his decision about the job offer. Scorpius was sad to go, as he seemed to greatly enjoy playing with the baby. Draco, however, was having a hard time focusing on anything else. Bloody hell, he just named Harry Potter's new baby.


End file.
